With Savea resting until the Bulls game on August 15, Taylor is filling in as All Blacks skipper for the early tour legs against the URC sides. Speaking in Cape Town, he was candid about how much New Zealand players miss the cross-hemisphere club rivalry — calling the Super Rugby split a genuine loss — and singled out the Stormers encounter specifically, recalling that 2019 Crusaders draw with obvious affection. He's also carrying a calf tweak that rules him out of the Stormers opener, though he expects to be available soon after. The piece is mostly a window into All Blacks tour sentiment rather than hard tactical analysis, but Taylor's blunt admission that facing South African club sides offers a "different brand of rugby" to anything they get in Super Rugby Pacific is a telling reminder of what the split cost the game competitively.
Codie Taylor can't wait to face the SA franchises — and wants Super Rugby back
Taylor, standing in as All Blacks captain while Savea rests, says the Super Rugby split genuinely frustrates him — he's relishing the chance to face the URC franchises again and isn't shy about saying NZ misses it. He's also managing a calf tweak that should clear before the Test series.
Ackermann faces familiar rebuild — minus players, minus time
Ackermann must integrate a wave of new signings, absorb significant departing experience and navigate a fractured pre-season — all without ten Boks until late November. The piece maps exactly how steep that rebuild is.
White: This Bulls squad is better equipped — and they know they can't waste this chance
Jake White makes a personnel-driven case for a Bulls upset on Friday, pointing to five returning Test-calibre starters as the difference from last year's final — while urging the squad to treat this as the chance they may not get again.
Gavin Rich: Boks, Bulls, Barbarians — and a season full of promise (and problems)
Gavin Rich previews a packed Springbok season, with sharp criticism of the Baltimore leg undermining the All Blacks series concept, scepticism about the Nations Championship's credibility, and cautious optimism for the Bulls ahead of the URC final.
Matthee 'never really been out of the team' as Stormers back him to fill Feinberg-Mngomezulu void against Leinster
Jurie Matthee starts at flyhalf for the Stormers in Saturday's URC semifinal against Leinster in Dublin after Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu was ruled out for three months with an ankle injury. Assistant coach Rito Hlungwani says Matthee's integration into the starting side will be seamless, pointing to his consistent involvement in training and a strong record when called upon, including man-of-the-match performances against Benetton in Treviso and the Bulls away. Wing Seabelo Senatla, concussed against Cardiff, also misses the trip.
Bulls favourites, Stormers bloodied but unbowed — URC semi-final verdicts
Nel argues the Bulls are legitimate semi-final favourites given Glasgow's recent vulnerabilities and the Murrayfield venue switch, while the Stormers head to Dublin shorthanded — Feinberg-Mngomezulu, Reinach, Senatla and possibly Du Plessis all out — but with a powerful pack and nothing to lose against Leinster.